PHOEMALE

Phoemale is a passion project that celebrates, honors, and applauds some of the crazy talented, driven, inspirational women living in the city of Phoenix, Arizona. This city has a lot of amazing women doing incredible, meaningful things for the city, for themselves, for the art community, for the world. It's always a good time to honor women making a difference and doing their thang, but it is particularly significant in the world we live in right now. This is a celebration of not only their craft, but the women themselves. They are strong. They are smart. They are driven. They are empowered.

This project has evolved into what it is today from my yearning to make Phoenix feel like home and my need to surround myself with likeminded women - my soul sisters, my tribe, if you will . The journey to find these two things continues to nourish my soul. I moved to this city six years ago. I didn't immediately fall in love with Phoenix. Honestly, it's still a work in progress. I crave water, rain, and lush green surroundings. Phoenix has a lot to offer, but not much of those three things. I tended to (and still sometimes do) feel like a fish out of water here in the desert. How do I find satisfaction and comfort in the environment I live in? How do I find those female connections my soul craves?

This is how!

I have had the idea for Phoemale stewing and brewing in the back of my mind for years. I have met and befriended so many inspiring women in this city. Each and every one of them has lit the spark to ignite this project. I see women all around me lifting each other up and celebrating one another. I've seen too much of the opposite among women in my past. Part of the heart of this project is photographing these spectacular women in their homes. Home is what I've been searching for. Home is where many of our creative dreams are born and nurtured. It is where we keep our most treasured possessions. Home is family. Home is love. It is sacred; where we are our most comfortable. I'm honoring that sacredness with raw, beautiful, truthful portraits.